Don't let conflict ruin your professional life

During their lifetime it is estimated that the average Briton will spend 115 days laughing, 60 hours on hold and a staggering 99,117 hours at work!

With so much time spent at work it is essential that workers are happy and comfortable in their workplace, wherever that may be. Workplace stress can result in sick days and a demotivated workforce. More worryingly, stress over a prolonged period of time can lead to other health issues such as heart disease, high-blood pressure and depression.

Living under a cloud of stress and anxiety can be all consuming, particularly when the cause of the stress is the workplace. Weekends and holidays can be spoiled by worry or even the fear of returning to work.

Workplace disputes can be caused by any number of reasons; it may interpersonal issues or personality clash between colleagues, harassment, unfair dismissal or a dispute over a contract. Whatever the issue the first port of call for any employee is to raise the issue with a line manager; if this is not appropriate then the company’s HR team should be involved.

One way to resolve workplace disputes is through mediation. This tried and tested method often achieves results and positive outcomes and in many cases prevents the case being further escalated to either a tribunal or legal proceedings. These mediations are often sessional, ie involve a series of meetings with all those necessary for a negotiated resolution to succeed, for example, the employee, the line manager/team leader, other members of the team, senior management, HR department, etc.

Predominantly focusing on the conflict and issue between individuals, workplace mediation can work for entire teams. Where teams are in conflict and becoming unproductive thanks to issues between colleagues, mediation sessions as individuals and as a group to understand the issues, each other’s perspective and the group’s dynamics can pay dividends for organisations.

Where a workplace dispute has escalated to the stage where the employee has left the employer organisation, the mediation model is usually designed in a similar way to a commercial mediation - it is normal to allocate a single day with the decision makers present with their legal advisers. The issue in employment mediation, once the employee has left, is normally about severance terms and compensation rather than rebuilding a viable relationship.

Mediation is a pro-active way of resolving a dispute and thanks to the expert skills of the mediator, who is a skilled communicator, sometimes from a legal background, an open dialogue can be achieved.